One of the most critical steps of a faux painting project is the final topcoat that you apply to the surface because this final layer will protect your hard work and keep it looking great for years to come. Topcoats seal and protect what’s underneath, and that means your masterpiece won’t fall victim to elements that might take away some of the beauty from your faux finish.

Also, clear finish coats can be used to create the right sheen for your project, such as giving a satin finish to a surface that would otherwise appear matte, and vice versa. There are many different types of finishing coats you can use to seal your work, including waxes, polishes, epoxy sealants, and acrylic, among others. These various projects are all good for unique surfaces, can be used to create different finishing effects, and are ideal for protecting against specific elements.

Clear Topcoats Are Protective Finishes that Safeguard Your Hard Work

A remarkable amount of thought, time, and effort go into every single faux painting project, and you want to make sure elements that could damage the surface doesn’t thwart your hard work.

There are plenty of things that can degrade painted surfaces like walls, floors, and cabinets, and these elements include:

  • Regular wear and tear
  • Foot traffic
  • Water
  • Mold
  • Ultraviolet rays
  • Cleaning products (ammonia)

For instance, if you were to paint your floor, so it looked like marble, just the act of walking on the surface would, over time, wear away the paint, dull the surface, and disfigure the look of your perfect faux marble floor. However, with the right clear topcoat, you can seal your faux painting job from various elements to keep it looking fresh and perfect for years to come.

Using Topcoats to Create the Perfect Finish

Topcoats are made of various materials, such as varnish, urethane, and wax, for instance, and each of these can help you achieve different finishes, depending on the sheen you’re looking for. Dead Flat Varnish, which is a specific product carried by Faux Masters Studio, will produce a finish that’s completely sheen-free. This effect is ideal for faux looks such as stone, mud, and textiles.

By contrast, Polishing Compound can be left alone to produce a frosty white finish, but it can also be polished to a high-gloss finish. Similarly, AquaWax and Olde World Venetian Wax are ideal for creating a clear gloss finish, as is the case with most wax topcoats. On the other hand, products like Olde World Venetian Sealer produce a basic clear coat that doesn’t alter the sheen of your finish.

Epoxy Sealants to Protect Surfaces from Water Damage

Epoxies are polymer products, which means epoxy-based sealants are ideal for protecting surfaces from both water damage and chemicals that might otherwise erode the hard work you put into your faux painting project. At Faux Masters Studio, we carry a product line called Rock-Kote, and this is perfect for painted surfaces such as counters, sinks, and floors that come into regular contact with water and cleaning supplies that could potentially damage the finish.

Acrylic Products Are Ideal Finishes When You Want a Clear Topcoat

The Faux Masters Studio product line also includes a group of topcoats called AquaGard and AquaThane. These are acrylic-based topcoats and co-polymer acrylic urethanes that produce a clear finish that will protect your faux painting project, make your surface more durable, and keep your masterpiece fresh and vibrant for many years. Because of how robust these products are, they’re ideal for high-traffic areas like floors and cabinets. There’s even an AquaGard product that’s specifically designed to protect against ultraviolet light, which is one of the biggest threats to your faux is painting because UV can bleach colors and leave your surfaces looking dull.

Waxes Are Perfect When You Need to Protect Wooden Furniture, Art, and Other Pieces

Because waxes are thick and viscous, they are excellent at protecting from water damage, and wax topcoats are perfect for protecting and toning wood, and bringing out the natural beauty in surfaces such as moldings, carvings, furnishings, and railings. However, these products are also great for protecting wood and other surfaces (especially ceilings and walls) from wear and tear and other elements. Faux Masters Studio carries several wax topcoat products, including:

  • O’Villa® Wax
  • AquaWax
  • RsWaterWax
  • Master Finishing Wax
  • Olde World Venetian Wax

Special Sealant Products for All Your Plaster Work

Plaster is one of the most used materials for faux painting because it is incredibly versatile and can be used to produce many different textures and patterns. And when you put so much work into creating the perfect substrate for your faux finish, you want to make sure the surface will be protected from damaging factors. Olde World Venetian Sealer is an ideal sealant for these types of projects because it’s a breathable yet protective clear topcoat that’s easy to apply and highly effective at providing long-term protection for your masterpieces.

Although you can’t always directly see the effect of a clear topcoat, these products are a vital final step to any faux painting finish. While some topcoats can change the sheen of your surface and provide the perfect finish for your work, they’re also effective at sealing and protecting wood, stone, tile, walls, ceilings, and other surfaces from harmful elements (e.g., water, UV rays, and regular wear) that could damage and dull your paintwork.

Faux Masters Studio carries a broad selection of clear topcoats that you can apply to various surfaces to provide ongoing protection from these factors, and this means your hard work will be preserved in its perfect form for many years to come.

3 Comments

  1. David J Parker says:

    I’m a painting contractor in Orlando
    I’m working on a house that hard plastic composite exterior shutters that have the wood grain look they also have a clear coat to protect from the sun
    Would the clear coat be oil or acrylic base . On all the real wood they used silkens / prolux oil base .

  2. Jeannette Eiriksson says:

    The bedroom has a venetian plaster faux finish on it in dark browns it would be great as a man cave but it is going to be a 10 year old girl bedroom now. How can I prep the walls for primer and latex paint. Your help would be greatly appreciated. Jeannette

  3. Frank Denis says:

    I have a exterior project that is Venetian plaster and is starting to fade. I need a wax that has a UV protectant and waterproof type of agent that will last five years.

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